Saturday, December 6, 2008

The Young Farmers Conference

It was AWESOME!  The conference was held on 12/4-5 at the Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture, which is a non-profit educational and operational farm in Tarrytown, NY and there were so many amazing resources for a starter-farmer like me. 
I was pleasantly surprised that I actually KNEW some people there...my friends from Quail Hill Farm in the Hamptons - Farmer Scott Chaskey and Apprentices Katie and Amanda - and my freshman floor-mate Jen, who does Farmer Outreach at Just Food (and was the one who tipped me off about the conference!)  But I also met some new friends and feel warm and fuzzy about that fact that there is truly a community of young people like me who are obsessed with an agrarian ideal.
There is hope for local and well-produced food, America, and it lies in the Young Farmers among us!
I also went to the not-at-all overrated Blue Hill at Stone Barns restaurant. Seriously, eat there. I felt like I was eating the flavor-manifestations of my foodie-organic-Slow Food-Nourishing Traditions-alternative food systems ideals - all in about 15 absurdly good courses.